Learning Ginny
by FallenAngel36
Summary: The story starts off during the summer between Harry's 5th and 6th years, but in the course of this, Voldemort has a lasting surge of power, and it's up to the New Marauders to stop him. Does Ginny hold the key to doing just that??
1. The Skate Off and the Aftermath

Learning Ginny: A Love Story By syders  
  
Summary: It starts off during the summer before Harry's 6th year at Hogwarts and Ginny's 5th year and will continue until I find a good place to stop. In the midst of a terrible time, love stirs and victories grow. Watch as Harry and Ginny fall in love, only to be brutally torn apart. Will that ever see each other again? And knowing me that means that it might never stop(!  
  
A/N: Hey everyone!!! This is officially my second fan fiction story and it is a romances b/w (between) Harry and Ginny, with some stuff on Hermione and Ron too (just for you lolo(.) Plus everyone on the ice skating team is a witch, but Mercedes Blanc and Lawson Newton are the only ones in Gryffindor with Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione at Hogwarts, but is a muggle born. Plus there are give-aways to the plots of the third and fourth books, so if you have not read them, I don't suggest you read this as it may confuse you. Well here goes..  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the things that look unfamiliar, such as Mercedes Blanc and Lillana Newton, her gang of nitwits, and Sam, though if she heard me say this, she'd probably kick me. There is also some reference to the Olympic gold medalist Sarah Hughes (my own personal favorite ice skater!!!!) from the Winter Olympics of 2002. And Coach Max is a real coach at my school who coaches the soccer team. The brilliant and wonderful JK Rowling owns everything else.  
  
Chapter 1- The Skate Off and the Aftermath.  
  
Ginny Weasley woke up the first Saturday morning of summer to find the dawn light streaming across her face. She sat up and stretched, then tried to untangle her legs from her sheets. No luck there, she was a very wild sleeper. After about five minutes of trying to free her pale legs, she just decided to yank her legs from the sheets. She did so falling in the process trying to be as quiet as she could and not wake Hermione who was still asleep on the floor. She then walked over to the window and opened it breathing the warm scent of summer. She turned around and walked over to her dresser where she pulled out a pair of light blue tights and a white baby tee. She took a shower and washed her hair, put on the pants and the shirt, then slid white knee-highs over the pants, but not pulling them all the way up. She slid on her running shoes and grabbed her white Hogwarts ice-skating Team sweatshirt and ran downstairs. She was supposed to meet her best friend in the entire world Mercedes Blanc at the rink and train for five hours before everyone else got there. The team was a new development that was created in order to keep the kids in good spirits and strengthen the bonds between schools. The five am practices were part of a new training plan that their coach had put together for them, and they were planing to stick to it, even if everyone else didn't.  
  
When she got to the kitchen it was empty, but there was a note for her from her mother on the table. She read it as she flew past.  
  
Dear Gin, Honey, I want you to eat something before you leave, or at least take some money with you to get something after. Be home by eight, because Harry will be here at nine. Have a good practice and don't start anything Lilla. We don't need another broken nose to explain to your father, do we? Mum  
  
She sighed, flipped the note over and wrote back to her mother.  
  
Dear Mum, I will eat some toast, then take 3 galleons to buy lunch. Also you know very well that practice doesn't start until ten and is going to be an all day thing, so I have absolutely no idea what time I will be home, but I will try to be here around three. I can't wait to see Harry, but I have more important matters to handle. And I don't try and find trouble with Lilla she always starts stuff. See you around three, Gin  
  
She looked at her watch. It read 5:30. "Shit! I'm late!" She muttered to herself grabbing a few pieces of bread and running to the back door. She grabbed her skates, snatched her purse off the counter quickly tied the strings and flung them over her shoulders and ran out like the devil was hot on her heels grabbing her broom as she ran out the shed. She climbed on and kicked off without stopping, the wind drying the vibrant red hair that she had neglected to dry. "Oh Merlin! 'Cedes is gonna kill me." Ginny muttered to herself as she spotted the rink somewhere below her. And sure enough, as she landed in front of the rink there was Mercedes, broom over shoulder, skates around neck, and just as impatient as ever. She was tapping her foot on the ground and was giving Ginny a reproachful look. She was wearing the same thing as Ginny, blue pants and a white baby tee it was the team practice uniform, but her knee-highs were pink instead of white, cause Ginny was the captain.  
  
"It's about time!! Where have you been??? I was beginning to think you'd flown across the path of Death Eaters or something." She said annoyed. "I wanted to get on the ice before the Snob Queen and her supporters get here." She said referring to the girls' mortal enemy Lillana Newton, a pureblood who thought she was better than every one else and treated Ginny and Mercedes like the dirt she walked on ever since they had met, and it had only gotten worse after Ginny was made captain.  
  
"Oh hush 'Cedes! You said to be here at five thirty and it's only five forty-five. I'm here." Ginny said smiling at her friend's attitude as she landed.  
  
"Yeah, but I had to wait until you got here to get in, you are the only person besides Coach Max who has a key. So I had to sit here for fifteen minutes and wait."  
  
"Oh stop your nagging and let's go! I'm itching for some ice. Besides, did you bring your stuff for tonight? You are still sleeping over right?" Ginny said only seeing the brunette's duffel, her trunk was missing.  
  
"Yes silly, I'm still spending the rest of the summer with you, but my dad is bringing my trunk and Nia over later."  
  
"Oh, okay." Ginny said as she turned to the door and unlocked it with the key around her neck. When she walked in she flipped the switch on all the lights, went into the locker rooms, and propped her broom against the wall and Mercedes followed her example rambling on the whole time. She threw her purse into her locker, pulled off her running shoes then stood up and stretched every single muscle in her body. She listened quietly to her bones pop and ease out of sleepy stiffness while Mercedes rambled on about promptness and responsibility. "MERCEDES CHRISTIAN BLANC, SHUTUP!" She shouted stopping Mercedes mid sentence. "You're starting to sound like Percy and I get enough of that at home already."  
  
"Oh. Sorry. But you did have me a little worried there. I mean you never know what can happen these days with Voldemort back and everything."  
  
"Yeah I know, I'm sorry for yelling." Ginny said getting on the stationary bike in the middle of the room.  
  
Mercedes got on the treadmill and started talking to Ginny with huffs and puffs in the middle. "So Ginny, who else is coming over your house tonight?" She asked after about thirty minutes of silence.  
  
"Um, you and Lawson are coming to dinner, then we're going to Sam's party after that. My mum left me a note that said Harry will be over at about nine, and she told me to be back by eight." Ginny said, sweat dripping down her forehead as she peddled with all her strength. Samantha Chesterson was the most nicest fifth year girl at Hogwarts and her father was a movie producer, so naturally, getting invited to her birthday party was something good 'cause you never knew who you were going to bump into. She was also a small portion of the New Marauders, the most popular group in Hogwarts. The entire group consisted of Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Seamus Finnigan, Dean Thomas, Samantha Chesterson, Roane Hughes, Lawson Newton, Mercedes Blanc, and Ginny Weasley. They hadn't really even thought of having a name until Professor McGonagall sort of mentioned that they had all been getting into so much trouble, that seemed to be taking after the Marauders, only with a slightly larger group. It clicked! Then it only seemed right to call themselves the New Marauders especially since Harry's father had been a part of the first one.  
  
"Eight? She must know that you won't be back any time around then." Mercedes said looking at Ginny.  
  
"I wrote her back and told her just that. Said I wouldn't be back till about three." Ginny said climbing off the stationary and then getting on the treadmill as Mercedes started to do a set of crunches.  
  
"Good. So what are you wearing to Sam's party tonight?" Mercedes gasped from the floor. God, she hated crunches!!  
  
"Uh, a light green shirt, and a jean mini skirt with the boots my mum got me for my birthday. How 'bout you?"  
  
"Pink halter top and jeans."  
  
"That's cool." Ginny said turning up the speed on the treadmill to about 9 without even stopping.  
  
"Merlin you're fast. If we went to a muggle school, you'd definitely be on the track team." Mercedes said finally finishing her crunches and climbing on the stationary. Ginny just smiled, talking might confuse her and make her fall and she certainly didn't need a rug burn any-where on her body just then. After another hour of running at top speed Ginny got off the treadmill, and did her crunches. She didn't mind them nearly as much as she used to. She finished and sat down on the wooden bench to put her skates on. She took off her sweatshirt and put her thick waist length red hair in a bun. Then she wobbled out on her blades, took off the blade guards and stepped onto the ice. "Boy it's been way too long since I've been here." She muttered to more to herself than anyone else gliding around in circles doing the occasional jump or spin.  
  
"What do you mean? We were just here last night with every one else practicing for the meet." Mercedes said gliding up beside her then skating away, warming up for what they were about to do.  
  
"I know, that's too long. Sometimes I wish I could live here."  
  
"Girl you are way too obsessed with this sport."  
  
"I know, hey did you see Sarah Hughes last night? She was awesome. Genevieve Blanche was good too, but she had that nasty spill after the double axle. But come on, what professional can't do a double axle? Even we can do those!! If you ask me, she's been spending a little too much time off the ice. I mean I know she broke her leg and all, but come on, you can't be all that bad after three months off!!" Ginny ranted.  
  
"All right Ginny!, We should just skate now and talk later." They warmed up for about an hour and a half then went to the bleachers that were built into the floor and wall.  
  
"Ready?" Mercedes asked pulling out her wand and pointing it at the sound system.  
  
"Yeah, I want to practice my routine some more."  
  
"But you've all ready mastered yours, let me at least try mine." Whined Mercedes.  
  
"Fine," Ginny said. "But I'm giving you pointers." She skated off the ice and sat down on the bleachers next to the sound system that she had only just figured out how to work. Mercedes took her starting position and Ginny started the music. From the second she started, Ginny began shouting pointers and tips to make the performance better.  
  
"Thank you, oh, Queen of the Rink." Mercedes joked as she finally stepped off the ice. "I'll be sure and give you a few pointers of my own."  
  
"Yeah, yeah," Ginny said. "My turn, my turn." She pushed past Mercedes and sped around the rink once before slowing down and taking her starting stance. She felt every worry and thought leave her and only felt the chill of the ice on the bottom of her up raised arms. She smiled to herself and somehow knew she was going to place first at the meet next weekend against the Levine Phoenixes. She nodded at Mercedes to start the music and let the soft notes lead her every move. She didn't think about the combination, only did what her feet told her to do, executing every spin, turn, and jump perfectly. When she finally finished, Mercedes didn't have one bad word to say.  
  
"That was wonderful, you are gonna blow those poseurs away. Even though you suck at Divination nobody skates like you Gin." Mercedes praised.  
  
"Is that so huh? Well why don't you put your blades where your mouth is?" said a snotty voice from the other side of the rink. "How about a skate off?"  
  
Mercedes and Ginny turned to see a mean blonde bimbo (no offense you blondes out there, some of my best friends are blondes and they are the nicest people. She is just mean though.), standing across the rink, near the locker rooms. It was Lilliana Newton and her "BFF's" Lana Figg and Abigail Sands were standing right next to her with an evil smirk on her face.  
  
"Leave them alone Lilla." Said a boy walking out of the locker rooms and over to Ginny and Mercedes, his best friends. He was Lawson Newton Lilliana's twin brother, but they didn't look like each other, or act like each other. Law, as everyone called him, was fun and caring and he was always one to end fights between his sister and his best friends, while Lilliana, or Lilla, was always one to start fights, then turn and run with her tail between her legs once it got serious. Law had dark brown hair, violet blue eyes and a healthy olive complexion, but Lilla was a shiny blonde with dark brown eyes and pale, almost white skin. She reminded Ginny of someone who could be Malfoy's twin instead of Law's.  
  
"What if I don't, huh? Gonna tell our precious father?"  
  
"No Law, let's get this over with once and for all. You want a skate off Lilla? Well you just got yourself your Christmas wish. Bring it on honey, and I'll tell you what your worth." Ginny said gliding over to where Lilla was standing with Lana and Abby.  
  
For a second, Lilla's smile faltered, she hadn't expected Ginny to accept, let alone accept it the way she did. But she put on an evil smile and said, "Children first. Oh and remember it's freestyle, so do your best, and choose whatever music you want. I'll skate to whatever you skate too." Ginny had to bite her toung to keep from slapping Lilla hard across her face.  
  
"Fine." She forced out. Ginny turned around on the ice doing a couple of spins on the way to the other side of the rink to change the CD in the player to something fast and upbeat.  
  
When she reached the other side Law whispered in her ear, "You know you don't have to do this Gin."  
  
Ginny turned to Law and bored her sky blue eyes into his violet blue ones and said, "Law this ends right here, right now. I am sick and tired of your little bitchy sister always doing things to nerve me. It is over." With that she pulled Coach Max's CD case out from the shelf under the sound system and picked a CD by Sum 41, a good muggle rock group and handed it to Mercedes who put it in the player and got ready to start it. "Besides, I can skate to rock with rhythm and she can't. Law as soon as the music starts keep a good watch on Lilla and Lana, make sure they don't start any funny business. 'Cedes, same for you, keep a good watch on Abby." Ginny added as she stepped back out on the ice confidant and calm once again. Her previous anger and restless gone. As the music started, she started a flashy routine she'd come up with at home while she listened to one of Percy's long speeches on respect and responsibility after she had walked in late after practice one day. She heard gasps from the front door that sounded distinctly familiar and more from the door of the locker room as she flew around the rink giving it all she had, but ignored them. Who cared if the only people who had actually seen her skate freestyle were Law and 'Cedes. That should have expected that she'd burst someday, finally give up on trying to make peace with Lilla. But this time she'd had enough, and wasn't putting up with Lilla's bitterness anymore. When the fast music stopped she did a t-stop infront of Lilla, Lana, and Abby spraying them with ice, but they were still too stunned from Ginny's performance to move.  
  
"Your turn." Ginny said sweetly making Lilla snap out of it, scowl and push past Ginny to the sound system choosing a song on the same CD.  
  
"Now watch how it's really done." Lilla called from the center of the rink. But Ginny was back with 'Cedes and Law and all three could have cared less if Lilla could even think about stringing two beats together in the middle of a drum solo. Which she couldn't by the way. They were just glad that someone finally had the guts to stand up to Lilliana Jane Newton.  
  
"Oh poor Law. He is cursed with having a brat for a sister. A twin sister at that." 'Cedes said loud enough for everyone to hear after Lilla was finished making a fool of her self. "Let's all give him a hug to make him feel better." She added making half of the team laugh and the other half mutter insults under their breath.  
  
In the middle of all the laughing, Ginny again heard the familiar voices and looked across the rink into the opposite stands and saw three of her favorite people, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and her brother Ron Weasley.  
  
"HARRY!!!!!!" She screamed. And looked at her watch. Ten thirty???????? She must have really been into her skating. The time had flown by. She hopped off the bleachers glided across the ice as fast as she could and flung herself into Harry's arms.  
  
"Woah Gin careful, you don't want to kill him do you?" Ron said playfully. He knew his sister still had gotten over her crush on Harry a long time ago, but he still liked teasing her.  
  
Ginny blushed violently and stood as straight as she could in her skates. "I'm just happy to see that he's still alive, what with the attacks on the area around his aunt and uncle's house. Nothing more, nothing less." She said flattening her sweaty hair and bangs as best as she could.  
  
"Sure Ginny, sure." Ron said smirking, receiving a "look" form Ginny and a slap on the arm from Hermione.  
  
Harry ignored him and said, "So Ginny, I didn't know you were a skater."  
  
"Well Harry, there are a lot of things you don't know about me." Ginny said.  
  
"Well maybe I'll just try and find out." Harry said quietly.  
  
"Ginny do you like to skate?" Hermione said putting her head on Ron's shoulder and changing the subject to a more open one before someone spilled feelings that didn't need to be spilled.  
  
"L-l-like?" Ginny almost choked on the word.  
  
"No, not like. Ginny here is obsessed with and can't get enough of skating. As a matter of fact she is the team captain" A tall Coach Max said skating up behind Ginny, "But now she has to practice with the team for next weeks competition. But you can stay if you like."  
  
'Thanks, I think we'll do that." Harry said smiling.  
  
Ginny turned and started talking to her coach about the meet, then skated to the middle of the rink. "Okay every one line up! Time for role call!" All of the team members, ten girls and ten boys, lined up in front of Ginny as she called off names.  
  
"Anna A."  
  
"Here." Said a raven-haired girl near the end of the line.  
  
"Daniel"  
  
"Here!" Said a black boy brightly.  
  
"Anna C."  
  
"Here." Said a girl right infront of Ginny. Ginny looked up from the paper she was reading off of and looked at the girl.  
  
"Hello Anna I'm glad to see you're feeling better. How's your throat?"  
  
"Still a little sore, but better. Thanks for asking."  
  
"No prob." Ginny said and continued with the list. When she got to Lilla's name, Lilla grunted and didn't say anything else. Then Ginny called Law's name after that, and Harry couldn't believe they were twins. Lilla looked like Malfoy, but Law looked like Cedric did before he died.  
  
After Ginny finished calling the names. Max moved to the front of the group and said loudly so everyone could hear, "I want you to grab you couples partner, we are going to work on the ice dancing routines. They need to be perfect, because there might be scouts there from the national teams and I'd like to boast that I have former team members on our national teams. Ginny and Law, you're up first, let's go." He skated over to the bleachers next to the sound system, sat down, and started an upbeat jazz tune.  
  
Harry looked over to where Ginny was and saw that she was pared with Law and a hot jealousy surged through him, but he didn't know why. He watched as Law grabbed Ginny lightly around the waist and threw her in to a perfect triple axle, then watched in awe as they completed a simple side by side double toe loop. After that Law took Ginny's hands and they executed a perfect death spin then, while still spinning, Law picked Ginny up and held her over his head. She then slid down his back and pulled him to a stop as the music slowly ended. Harry could easily see that Ginny and Law were by far the best skaters there.  
  
"Excellent, excellent as always Gin and Law. How did you come up with that particular routine? And how did you find the music to go with it?" Max asked.  
  
"Well the music was Law's idea and I created the routine doing a play-by- play in my head as I listened to my brother Percy talk about his wonderful job at the ministry. Then I came here a worked it out into steps. Perce was kinda upset that I just up and walked out on him, but it was really just a spur of the moment type thing." Ginny said with a light voice.  
  
"Good, good. And what type of out fits will you be wearing?" Max asked clearly interested in what his best team members had chosen.  
  
"Well, we don't exactly know yet, but we're going to Wittnauer Alley with Marc and 'Cedes tomorrow." Ginny said referring to the magical showing center in Switzerland that concentrated on sports and nothing else. It had everything to do with muggle sports and magical sports alike.  
  
"All right, well let me know at Wednesday's practice all right?"  
  
"Sure thing coach M." Law said ushering Ginny off the ice and over to Harry, Ron and Hermione, although Ron and Hermione were um. busy, they had recently spilled their guts out to each other and were now boyfriend and girlfriend.  
  
"You guys were great!!" Harry said. "You're a real team."  
  
"Thanks, we're hoping to empress a scout at the meet, though we'll have to finish school at Hogwarts before we go anywhere, 'specially to the Olympics if they aren't here, which I highly doubt. The Winter Olympics have never been held here in England as far as I know, and believe me I know a lot. And if-"  
  
Law cut her off, "Gin, you're ranting again." He and Mercedes constantly had to remind her that she was doing just that, because she would go on forever about the history of ice-skating if you let her. She was like a female Oliver Wood.  
  
"That's okay, I know nothing about this sport." Harry said with a grin. "By the way I don't think I've said hello to you yet Law. But not like it's been a long time eh? Only left Hogwarts last Monday, also I'll need to talk to you about the new chaser since Katie graduated." Harry and Law were the Captain and co. captain of the Grffindor Quidditch team, and Law was the Keeper.  
  
"Sure thing Harry, I'm coming to dinner at the Weasley's tonight, maybe we can talk then."  
  
"Sure." Harry smiled.  
  
Ginny turned around and looked at Max. "Is everyone done?" She asked.  
  
"Yeah, but I think I'm gonna keep Lilla and Chad for a little while longer. Lilla keeps messing up the side-by-side and she needs to get it right. So can you write that down in the books, and remind her of it on a later notice?" he called from across the ice.  
  
"Sure Max. It's already done." Ginny said, then she looked at Lilla and said, "Hope you get it soon, you wouldn't want to miss the party at Sam's tonight would you?" Ginny said sweetly. "Everyone in our year and up will be there." With that Ginny ran into the locker rooms with Mercedes, both girls giggling madly.  
  
"Girls," muttered Law, "Yeach."  
  
"I hear ya." Said Harry. As Law smiled and walked to the locker rooms to change and get his stuff.  
  
Fifteen minutes later Ginny and Mercedes came back out in their sweatshirts and running shoes, their skates slung over their shoulders, and their brooms in their hands. Ginny looked at her watch. It was two o'clock. "So how did you guys get here?" She asked.  
  
"We flew." Hermione said pointing at a set of brooms by the door.  
  
"Well let's go. Law we'll see you around six?" Ginny said.  
  
"Yep. I'll be there."  
  
"Cool." Ginny said leading everyone to the door. "Let's go, last one to the Burrow is a rotten egg!" She hopped on her broom and took off not expecting anyone to catch up with her. Boy was she wrong.  
  
A raven-haired blur shot past her like a bullet ruffling her hair and causing her hair band to fly off, and her skates to bounce painfully against her back. "Oh, and that was my favorite one too." She said in dismay as the hair band fell to the ground beneath them and her now long hair floated freely in the wind. "You'll pay for that Harry!!" She put on a burst of speed and caught up with him quickly. She looked at his face as she pulled up next to him and saw that he was smiling. "You did that on purpose." She said.  
  
"Whatcha gonna do about it?" Harry asked playfully.  
  
"I'm gonna beat you home!" She shouted back, putting on another burst of speed and shooting towards the Burrow, which was now only about two miles away. She'd be there within seconds. She landed at the front door and heard him land just a few seconds after her. She whipped around to face him with a triumphant grin on her face. "Ha! I beat you!!" She said poking him in the chest.  
  
"Yes you did, now can we please get cleaned up?" Mercedes said landing behind Harry.  
  
"Sure 'Cedes come on up. We can have Hermione help us with our hair and makeup." Ginny said. Turning and walking into the house, Mercedes by her side.  
  
A/N: I know that was a very long chapter, but I just kept getting ideas. R/R please tell me what you think. This first chapter was kind of boring, but I had to get it started and it will all get better in the next chapter. Thanks to lolo and friends for getting me started. And lolo, yes Samantha is the Sam we all know. Remember R/R!! TTFN- syders 


	2. The Party, The Fight, and The Pep Talk

A/N: Howdy all!! Well here's chapter two, hope you like it, and it isn't as boring as the last one, at least I hope not. This chapter starts off from Harry's POV at the ice rink, then changes to Ginny's after a bit, you'll know when it does.  
  
Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING BUT THE THINGS THAT DON'T LOOK FAMILIAR!!!( LIKE MERCEDES, LILLA, LANA, ABBY, SAM, ROANE, WHITTNAUER ALLEY AND SUCH) EVERYTHING ELSE BELONGS TO THE WONDERFUL JK ROWLING NOT ME! And I made up most of the purposes for the gems, and the thing about Eleanor Roosevelt came from "The Princess Diaries", don't you just love Anne Hathaway?  
  
Chapter 2- The Party, The Fight, and The Pep Talk  
  
Harry walked out of the ice rink and was met with a blast of warm summer air. He looked over at Ginny and saw that she was happier that he had ever seen her. She'd only been on the Hogwarts team for three years, and yet she was as good as it got and she love what she did. He remembered back to the beginning of his fifth year when professor Dumbledore had announced that the new building on the grounds was an ice rink and that they would be starting a school team to compete against other schools. Ginny's face had lit up like a Christmas tree and she immediately announced that she was trying out for the team. But Harry always thought she hadn't, guess he was wrong. She had tried out and had been made captain too, she was that good.  
  
Something flip flopped in Harry's stomach as Ginny turned and looked at him flashing a bright smile his way. She was beautiful, he noticed. He had always thought of her as Ron's little sister and nothing else, but now he thought different. Was it that her blue eyes were bluer, her red hair darker and longer? Or was it the new wave of confidence that seemed to radiate from her ever since she had started skating. Harry liked seeing her happy. She wasn't ever happy enough, always shadowed by her older brothers or smothered by her mother. But now she was beginning to stand up for herself, he could see that from the way she skated against Lilla and the way she talked to her too. Yep Ginny was a whole new person.  
  
"Let's go. Last one to the Burrow is a rotten egg!" she shouted as she hopped on her broom and took off. Harry and Mercedes hopped on their own brooms, and took off after her. It looked like Ron and Hermione were going to be the rotten eggs. Harry smiled to himself, it had taken them long enough. As he thought about this he shot past Ginny and he heard her shout, "You'll pay for that Harry!!"  
  
"Whatcha gonna do about it huh?" He asked as she pulled up beside him, he red hair training behind her like a banner.  
  
"I'm gonna beat you home." She said and took off, her hair rippling behind her.  
  
She landed and Harry landed right behind her. She whipped around and said "Ha! I beat you!!" She poked him hard in the chest.  
  
"Gin, can we just get cleaned up? I feel dirty." Mercedes said landing next to Harry.  
  
"Sure, come on up, then we can have Hermione help us with our makeup. See you later Harry." She smiled again, flipped her hair over her shoulder and went inside with Mercedes leaving Harry staring after her.  
  
Crazy thoughts ran through his mind as they went inside and disappeared up the stairs, Ginny sure wasn't just Ron's little sister anymore, she had grown up, and was beautiful. But the only question that remained was, did Harry have feelings for her?  
  
Ginny ran up the stairs to her remodeled room with Mercedes and shut the door behind them. Everything purple greeted them as they stepped in. "Did you at least bring your clothes for tonight with you?" She asked Mercedes dropping her things on the floor in the corner, and rummaging through her closet and dresser drawers, looking for her shirt and skirt.  
  
"Yeah, I'm not that daft you know." Mercedes said faking hurt.  
  
"Oh I'm sorry 'Cedes, didn't mean to be mean. Now go and take a shower before I get there first." Ginny said. Mercedes scampered out the room with a "Yes ma'am," and Ginny dropped to the floor in her closet looking for the boots her mother had gotten her for her birthday.  
  
"Where are they?" She muttered, standing up.  
  
"Check under your bed, hon." Her mirror said. Ginny gave the mirror a questioning glance before dropping to her knees once again and looking under her bed. They were there, right next to a few dust bunnies.  
  
"How'd they get there? I could have sworn I left them in the closet." Ginny shook her head figuring it had to be Fred and George. Just then Mercedes came back into the room wearing nice jeans and a pink halter-top. Her long curly brunette hair hung down her back, dripping water all over Ginny's deep purple carpet.  
  
"Now that's better. I actually feel clean. Did you know that Max made me and Marc do our routine six times??? I swear he was trying to make me pass out." Mercedes shuddered.  
  
"Six? Wow." Ginny said walking out the door to the bathroom. "I'll be back she called over her shoulder. She shut and locked the door to the bathroom, put her wand on the counter, and then took a nice long shower washing her hair good. She got out dried off and got dressed then looked at herself in the mirror. Usually she was a pale color, but now she was a warm peach with an unfaltering smile. Her blue eyes glittered and her dark red hair shined in the light from the window in the bathroom. 'Hey, I could actually be pretty.' She thought. She smiled wider and put the tip of her wand to her head. "Curlio" She muttered. And her hair curled into lasting ringlets that framed her face and tumbled down her back. Other that her skating abilities, her hair was her pride and joy. She bent down, picked up her dirty uniform and dumped it in the hamper for her mother to wash. She slid her wand into her pocket and walked out the bathroom and into her room.  
  
"Hermione! You finally got back, where were you?" Ginny said sitting down at the purple vanity knowing exactly where her friend had been.  
  
"With Ron." She said simply. "Now what is this about you wanting me to help you with your makeup?" Hermione said changing the subject.  
  
"Well we were wondering if you could give us some pointers." Mercedes said sitting on the floor and leaning against the bed.  
  
"Well I only have one tip to give you, less is more. So only wear the minimums like a little eye liner, a little bit of eye shadow, a little bit of blush, and a light lip gloss. Nothing too fancy."  
  
Ginny turned to the vanity mirror and did what Hermione said before turning back and saying, "How's this?"  
  
"Perfect, now switch with 'Cedes and let her do her thing." They did what they were told grabbed their jackets and ran downstairs. By then it was five thirty and the sun was beginning to set. They walked into the kitchen and saw Mrs. Weasley cooking dinner.  
  
"Hello girls!" She said brightly. "Why don't you take the utensils and set the table outside."  
  
"Sure thing mum." Ginny said brightly grabbing eleven cups and plates and heading out the door. Hermione took the spoons and forks, and Mercedes picked up the napkins and knives and followed Ginny out side where Ron and Harry were sitting on the grass next to the table trying to fix a broken leg on the table.  
  
"Hey Harry, Ron." Ginny said brightly.  
  
Harry looked up and went slack jawed, Ginny was beautiful. Her hair was tightly curled, her makeup was done, and she was wearing a green sleeveless turtleneck shirt combined with a bleached tie-dyed jean mini skirt and white knee high boots and a bleached tie-dyed jean jacket that matched with her skirt. "H-h-hi G-G-Ginny." He said staring.  
  
"She giggled lightly. "Hello Harry. Having a bit of a problem with the table I see."  
  
"Yeah. " He said blushing. 'Why are blushing stupid?! She is Ron's little sister you can not fall in love with her!!' He yelled to himself.  
  
"Here let me help." She said walking over. She pulled her wand out of her pocket, pointed it at the table and said, "Repario. It helps to be good in charms." The table leg began to mend itself and Harry and Ron turned it over and helped the girls set it up. As Harry took the plates from Ginny an electric shock went through them both and they jumped simultaneously. Ginny smiled nervously and stammered, "Uh, um, I-I-I'm going to go to Hermione. O- Over there. Um bye." Then she almost ran to where Hermione was setting down the forks at the other end of the table. She was blushing so furiously, that she was beginning to blend in with her hair.  
  
Soon they were done setting up the table, Law was there, and the food was on the table. "Hello all." Law said brightly as he walked into the back yard.  
  
"Well hello Lawson." Percy said from the spot next to Mr. Weasley, "How are your parents and sisters?"  
  
"Hello Percy, Mum and Dad are wonderful and so is Armen, but Lilla's pride is sorely bashed after what Ginny did to her today."  
  
"Ginny what did you do?" Her father asked turning to her with a reproachful stare.  
  
"Nothing Dad, I just gave her what she asked for." Ginny said innocently, "Because she did ask for it, huh Law?"  
  
"She did indeed Mr. W, she did indeed." Law said, his face serious, but his eyes were glittering with laughter. He sat on Harry's right  
  
"Ginny, tell me what you did." Mr. Weasley said again.  
  
"Come on dad, I did nothing wrong! Lilla asked, practically begged me for a skate off, so I gave her one. Let's just say she wasn't expecting me to accept her proposal, let alone do it the way I did it."  
  
"Ginny kicked Lilla's butt!" Ron cheered.  
  
"Ron! We do not talk about butts at the table." His mother said coming out of the house.  
  
"Yeah mum." He said.  
  
"I'm just glad someone finally put her in her place." Mercedes said sitting down next to Law. "Thanks Gin, now hopefully she'll leave us and everyone else alone."  
  
"No thanks needed, I just gave her what she had coming. But next time, if there is one, I don't think I'll be so friendly about it. I almost put a hole in my toung trying to keep from slapping her today." Ginny said looking for a place to sit. There was only one spot left, right next to Harry. She blushed slightly as she sat down.  
  
"So Gin," Harry said, "you were really good this morning, how do you stay in shape? I could use some pointers to help me get the team ready for the first game of the season."  
  
"Well, we have five am practices every morning, we eat from a strict diet, and we stick to what we do." Ginny said filling her plate with salad and then plucking one role from the breadbasket. Harry looked at Mercedes and Law and saw that they were doing the same thing, but Law also had a good- sized piece of fish too.  
  
"Wow you guys are committed to what you love huh?"  
  
"Yep and on the days that we don't have practices, like tomorrow, we run about eight miles, then lift weights till our muscles burn and we feel as if we can't go any farther."  
  
"So you're going to run tomorrow morning?" Harry asked surprised. Usually people slept in after parties like the one they were all going to that night.  
  
"Yep, would you like to come with us?" Ginny held her breath hoping against hope that he'd say yes. "Why do you want him to say yes?" She asked herself. 'He is only a friend, and you got over him a long time ago!'  
  
Harry thought for a second, would he be able to be up that early? He finally decided, "Sure." He said smiling.  
  
"Cool, meet 'Cedes and me in the kitchen at five tomorrow morning. You might want to wear shorts, cause you'll get hot."  
  
"Sure thing." Harry said just as a car horn honked outside in the front.  
  
"It's Roane let's go everyone." Ginny said standing up. She snatched her jacket off the back of her chair, ran to kiss her parents goodbye, and walked to the front of the house to see her last best friend Roane Hughes.  
  
"Ro!" She called, "We might have more riders that expected." Ginny pointed at her brother and his friends.  
  
"That's okay, we have lots of room." Roane climbed out of the limo in the front of the Burrow. She was tall and had mousy brown hair that ran halfway down her body and was almost always braided in one single braid that hung down her back. She was somewhat of a hippie and you can say she had a knack for Divination. "It sometimes pays to have a rich father." She smiled and greeted everyone. Roane, who was American, had lived in England most of her life because her parents suffered a divorce when she was three years old, and she was sent to live with her father, the ambassador to the UN, when she was nine. On her eleventh birthday she received a Hogwarts letter in the middle of a press conference. Her father's staff had a time trying to conceal her little secret from the press. "All aboard!! The Hughes express leaves within the next thirty seconds." Roane said lightly ushering everyone inside.  
  
Somehow Ginny once again ended up next to Harry, but Ron didn't look too happy about this. He was the last one to jump in the limo so he shut the door after he was seated. "All right Frank go ahead." Roane called to the front seat.  
  
The ride to the party was as uneventful as it got, except for the fact that Harry and Ginny kept shooting nervous glances at each other while the other wasn't looking. On the way there they picked up Seamus and Dean from Dean's grandmother's house. As the limo approached the large manor where the Chesterson family lived, all of the occupants of the car could feel the ground vibrating with music. "This is gonna be fun." Ginny said drawing surprised looks from everyone. She usually didn't even want to go to parties, let alone have fun at them.  
  
"Boy, you sure have changed." Harry said in wonder. Ginny just laughed and nodded.  
  
They stopped at the front door and piled out of the limo. Roane told the driver to park on the street and that they would be out around eleven, because it was just then nine. He drove away as Roane turned to all of her friends. Roane was into stones and their mystic abilities. When they had first met Roane they had thought her beliefs in the stones and their powers were a bunch of poppycock (though Ron had used much stronger language to describe what he thought about it). But after a personal incident in their third year that had much to do with a certain amber stone, which resided on Roane's slim ring finger, they too believed wholly in the powers of certain stones.  
  
"At ten fifty your rings are charmed to turn bright red warning you that you have ten minutes to get out here and meet up with everyone else. Got it?"  
  
"Yes mum." Joked Seamus as he slung one arm around her shoulders hugging her close. They had been together for almost two years now.  
  
"Well good. Let's party!!" They all walked inside, handed their coats to the doorman and continued to the "ball room" where the actual party was being held.  
  
Dean, who was Sam's boyfriend spotted her in an instant, walked up behind her and gave her a big hug accompanied with a whispered "Happy Birthday" in her ear. She turned in his arms and then hugged him back.  
  
"Thanks." She said brightly. Then she saw Ginny, Roane, and Mercedes behind him. "You came! I seriously didn't think you would, but I'm really glad you did. Well have fun." With that she turned around and went off someplace with Dean.  
  
"Let's go dance." Ginny said eyeing the pack of dancers on the dance floor.  
  
"Well if it isn't Miss I'm-the-Queen-of-the-World-Just-Because-I-Can-Skate, I didn't think you would be here." Said Lilla from the door.  
  
"Stuff it Lilla, I don't want to have to hit you, but if you ever say one more word to me or about me that is even slightly offending, I swear I will break that perfect little nose of yours and it will never be perfect again." Ginny said turning slowly to face the bitch.  
  
"No, I don't think I will. What you did today was-" But no one ever found out what Lilla thought about what Ginny did, because as soon as the first word had left Lilla's mouth Ginny knew it would be mean. So she drew back her fist and punched Lilla hard on the nose with so much force it broke in an instant and Lilla was thrown to the ground.  
  
"Now I warned you Lilla. I've had it. One more word, nice or not and I will break every other bone in your selfish evil body with out a second thought. You've tortured me and everyone else in this room for too long now and gotten away with it. Now it's your turn. Your reign as 'queen' is over. You don't rule anyone now and you never did." Ginny was standing over Lilla who was holding her nose, which was bleeding freely. Ginny's eyes were flashing dangerously and it looked like she was going to blow up with anger. The room was silent. The music had stopped and everyone had stopped dancing to watch Lilliana Newton get a beat-down from the most unlikely person- Ginny Weasley. Harry and Ron were staring at Ginny, dumbfounded. She had finally blown. They knew it would happen sooner or later.  
  
Lilla finally stood up and looked Ginny in the eye. "You little bitch! You'll pay for this!" With that she leaned over and pulled Ginny's curly hair hard. Ginny snatched Lilla's hand and squeezed it so hard that she let go of Ginny's hair. With her other hand Ginny gathered all her strength and punched Lilla again right on her already broken nose. Lilla's eyes watered and she dropped into a heap at Ginny's feet sobbing with pain. Her pride was killed, she'd been embarrassed by the same girl twice in the same day.  
  
Ginny looked down on her with absolute disgust and muttered one single word that said it all, "Leave."  
  
Lana and Abby rushed over to Lilla, picked her up and almost carried her out of the hall. When they left, everyone else looked at Ginny, who just scowled at the door through which the girls had just gone through, then turned and went through the glass double doors that led to the large garden and disappeared.  
  
Once she was gone Harry followed her. Ron made a move to follow him, but Hermione grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "Let him go Ron, let them talk." Ron frowned at her, then at Harry's retreating back.  
  
The entire room exploded into cheers as they realized what had just happened. Fanny and Nara, two Ravenclaw sixth years were skipping around singing, "Ding dog, the witch is dead, the witch is dead, we're free!"  
IN THE GARDEN:  
Ginny burst through the double glass doors and into the garden. She needed air fast, before she blew up. As she walked into the elaborate maze in the garden she heard the hall explode into cheers and the music start again. But she didn't care. She had finally hit Lilla, and she was glad. She didn't know what had come over her. One minute she was seeing clearly, the next, everything was red, and she was socking Lilla. Then she said something to her, what was it? Oh who cared anyway. Lilla was finally in her place. Ginny saw a stone bench up a head, and when she reached it she sat down resting her head on the backrest. Her hands began to fiddle with her black onyx ring, and she thought about what Dumbledore had meant when he said that it was very powerful, and that only she could harness it's powers. She remembered back to where, when, and why she and her friends had first received the rings in the first place.  
FLASHBACK:  
  
Dumbledore walked up to the stone table in the center of the dimly lit circular tower room. On the table rested a worn and old book that held the secrets of life, next to the book was a dusty velvet bag, and next to the bag burned a torch, the one and only light in the room. He motioned for everyone to stand in a circle around the table.  
  
Harry, Ron, Dean, Seamus, Law, Hermione, Ginny, Mercedes, Roane and Samantha, all the best of friends did as they were told. They all wearing white robes and soft white moccasins. The girls all had their hair down and the boys had all tamed their hair, with the exception of Harry whose hair could never be tamed completely. They stared at Dumbledore and wondered what all this was for. He had sent them messages via owl to meet him here at eleven thirty New Year's Eve, for an important ceremony which they were to be a part of. They had not been allowed to go home for the holidays and they wanted to know why.  
  
Dumbledore chanted something in Latin for a grand total of five minutes, then he said, "You are in the presence of ancient spirits older than I or anyone else in this room will ever be, so I ask that you be very respectful in this place. A small gift for each of you, left by the greatest wizard of all time, Merlin himself. Now, each of you will choose one, but whichever one you pick, you keep. The stone chooses the wearer so no trading no matter what color you get, for the stone's powers will work only for it's true bearer. The bands will all be a simple gold, but the stones will be different."  
  
"Seamus you first. And no peeking!" Dumbledore opened the sack just wide enough for Seamus's hand too easily go in and come out. He pulled out a ring with a dark green gem. "That is an amethyst stone, it has healing powers." Seamus nodded and stepped back.  
  
"Dean, now you." Dean stepped up, stuck his hand in and pulled out a shiny white one, "That's an opal it has strong warning powers. Whenever someone who is an enemy or can not be trusted it will turn black. Ron, come."  
  
Dean stepped back and Ron came forward and stuck his hand in the bag and pulled out a dark blue one. Dumbledore stared long and hard at Ron, but he didn't flinch, he just stared right back. Dumbledore smiled, nodded and said, "That is a moss agate, it is a warrior stone. You will be strong during battles." Ron nodded and stepped back letting Hermione step up.  
  
She tentatively put her hand in the bag and pulled out a light green one. "That is a jade. It will keep you calm in times of worry or distress." Hermione stepped back and Roane stepped up.  
  
She placed her hand gracefully into the gag pulling out a dark red stone. "That Ms. Hughes, is the answer to all of your questions. It will guide you down the right path." Roane looked at Dumbledore in disbelief for a moment, then a wide grin came across her face, and she stepped back down.  
  
Samantha stepped up to Dumbledore, her raven hair contrasting nicely with her white robes, and stuck her hand in the velvet bag, and pulled out a ring with a light pink stone. "Ah, the rosequartz, believed by Merlin to radiate love, somewhat like you do Ms. Chesterson." Sam beamed brightly at this, then backed into her spot.  
  
Law stepped up and stuck his hand into the sack. His hand came out clutching a smoky white one. "That is the white topaz there are precious few left in the world, most were destroyed by an evil king during the 1200's, it symbolizes peace and gives the wearer the power to enforce it."  
  
Law stepped down and Mercedes stepped up and slowly put her hand in the bag, pulling out a yellow one with black streaks through it. "This is a jasper. It is a confidence booster, and it gives the wearer the compassion to boost others' confidence levels."  
  
Mercedes blinked once and stepped down, letting Harry step up. Harry stared at the bag for a moment, then stuck his hand in and pulled out a black stone with one yellow streak, almost like a cat's eye. "The tiger eye, it gives off good energy and fights off bad, just like you Harry." Harry looked at Professor Dumbledor, then stepped back.  
  
Now only Ginny was left, she took a deep breath and stepped up to the bag. She put her hand in and grabbed the last ring inside and she pulled it out. It was completely black and was warm in her hands. "The black onyx, one of the only two left in the world and more powerful than all of the rings combined. It possesses powers beyond your imagination that only you can harness, and if placed in the wrong hands, there could be a dangerous out come, so keep it secret, keep it safe."  
  
Ginny stepped back and Dumbledore said to every one. "These are the ten ancient Rings of Merlin, and they have been entrusted to you by the Order of the Phoenix and supervised by Merlin himself and the Ancient Ones. The abilities of the rings reflect and/or magnify qualities you may have or ones that you need desperately in order to save the world from a terror yet to come. Alone they are powerful, but together, they can do wonders. You have been chosen by the Ancient Ones to be the Ring Bearers, and you have a mission to complete, the fate of the world as we know it depends on you. But, you must find this mission yourselves, with only the help from each other and a little help from the Ancient Ones. To contact them, this room will always be open to you and you only. There is no choice, you have been chosen and can not decline. I wish you all the luck."  
  
They just stared at him for a moment not registering what had happened. Then the questions started coming. "What just happened?" "Where are we?" "How did we get here?" "Why are we here?" "Why us, and what for?" "What type of mission?" "Will it be safe?" "Will we die?" "How can Merlin supervise us if he is dead?" "Who are the Ancient Ones?" "Why does Roane look so funny with her hair down?" (Ron got a good kick in the shin for that one.) And more often than not- "I don't get it!"  
  
Dumbledore let all of the questions fall out, then held up his hand when they started to get ridiculous. "All of the answers to your questions are here in this book, and with the help of Ms. Granger and Ms. Hughes, I trust you will find them well enough." With that Dumbledore waved his wand and all ten teenagers fell into a deep sleep. The next morning they all woke at the exact same second and looked around bewildered. They were in the hospital wing, their rings were on their right ring fingers, and their white robes were folded neatly at the end of their beds.  
  
Seamus looked at Dean, who looked at Ron, who looked at Hermione, who looked at Roane, who looked at Sam, who looked at Law, who looked at Mercedes, who looked at Harry, who looked at Ginny, who voiced what they were all thinking somewhere in the middle of their confused states. "Well I guess we've got a lot of reading to do, 'cause that ancient book thingy was huge." She sighed and looked out the window at the dawn sky. Her favorite time of the day, and she was still in bed trying to clear her head and get at least one decent thought. Maybe if she slept some more.  
  
END FLASHBACK!!!  
Harry turned into the maze and followed the twisting paths at a slow walk, he didn't want to scare Ginny when he walked in on her. He looked up ahead as he turned a corner and saw her sitting on a bench a few yards away, and she was resting her head on the back of the bench. He cleared his throat loudly to get her attention.  
  
Ginny's head snapped up and she looked around finally seeing Harry walking slowly toward her. "Hello Harry." She said quietly.  
  
"Ginny, are you okay?" He said sitting down next to her.  
  
"I am now." Ginny said then she sighed, "I just hope Lilla leaves us alone now. You know, Mercedes and I have been nothing but nice to her ever since "Little Tots", but all she has ever done is tease us and hurt us. And I say it stops now." She put her head in her hands and sighed again. "But if it keeps up, I just won't know what to do. I swore when we got our rings that I would use it only for good and not for evil, but that is getting harder and harder to do."  
  
"Ginny look at me," Harry said, he had to make her happy again. Ginny looked up at him with dry eyes. " 'The stone chooses the wearer'. " He said imitating Dumbledore's voice. Ginny smiled lightly. "You are brave, and powerful, and you can handle this. You've got to take charge of the situation, and you have the power to, you just have to access it. Why else would the black onyx choose you? You own the same qualities it radiates with out letting them get out of hand. You are one strong girl." Harry said looking at her.  
  
She smiled at him and gave him a quick hug. "Thanks Harry, I needed that little pep talk. I can always count on you." She hugged him again, then stood up and pulled him with her. "Come on, everyone is probably wondering where we've gone."  
  
"Yeah, your right. " Harry said putting his arm around Ginny's shoulders and hugging her close. "And always remember, 'no one can make you feel inferior without your consent.' "  
  
Ginny looked up at him and gave him a smiled that melted his heart, "Eleanor Roosevelt said that." Harry nodded and they walked in silence the rest of the way to the party, happier than ever just being in each other's company, but lost in their own thoughts, which went something like this:  
  
Ginny: 'Oh my Merlin!!! I told myself not to do it, and yet I'm doing it anyway!!!! I'm falling in love with Harry!! No, I'm not falling in love with Harry, I've already fallen!!'  
  
Harry: 'I'm a dead man, 'cause once Ron finds out I've fallen in love with his beloved sister, he'll kill me.'  
  
Both: 'But how do I tell him?' (But of course for Harry it's 'her' not him.)  
BACK AT THE PARTY:  
Ron looked towards the glass double doors for the eighth time in the last five minutes. "Ron!" Hermione said grabbing his face and turning it to face her "They are fine!! Harry is with Ginny, so nothing can harm her! Now stop worrying!!" She leaned in and kissed him hard on the mouth, making him forget everything else for the moment.  
  
"Ginny!" Someone yelled from behind Ron. He broke away from Hermione, and whipped around.  
  
"And just where have you been young lady??" He demanded.  
  
"Oh shush Ron, you sound like Percy." Ginny said with a laugh.  
  
Ron looked hurt, but brightened at the sight of his sister feeling better. She had been about to blow when she stormed out earlier. "Well, besides that, I'm glad to see you're feeling better. You looked ready to burst when you left earlier."  
  
"Yeah, Harry talked to me and then I felt better, much better." She said hugging Harry closer. She still had not let go of him.  
  
"Why? What did he say too you? What did you do Potter? Are you trying to seduce my sister?" Ron asked getting suspicious.  
  
"Ron?" Harry said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Shut up."  
  
Hermione looked at her hands in her lap so she wouldn't crack up at Ron's facial expression. She saw that her usual green ring was glowing red. "You guys it's time to go, they'll be waiting."  
  
Hermione, Ron, Harry, Ginny, Law, and Mercedes got up to find Sam and thank her for a great time at her party. "You gave me the best present ever, you got rid of that slut Lilliana, I didn't want to invite her but my mum said that if I invited Law, I had to invite his twin. I tried to explain to her that along with you all, Law is one of my best friends, that even he hates his sister, but she wouldn't have it. So I had to invite her. I'll see you guys tomorrow at Wittnauer Alley! Drive safely!" She said to them as she walked them to the front door.  
  
"Bye Sam!" They said and walked over to where Roane, Dean, and Seamus were standing waiting for them.  
  
"Same seating kiddies!" Roane said happily as the all got into the limo. Again Ron closed the door, and again, he wasn't too happy about the fact that his best friend and his sister were sitting right next to each other.  
  
Ginny was tired, the events of the night had drained her and she had to get up early the next morning. She yawned quietly, while everyone else discussed the damage Ginny had caused to Lilla's nose. No one but Harry noticed her yawn. "You can use my shoulder as a pillow if you want." He whispered in her ear.  
  
"Thank you." She whispered back. She snuggled up close to him and was soon fast asleep on his shoulder.  
  
When they reached the Burrow, Ron looked over at Ginny, and saw that she was a sleep on Harry's shoulder, and that Harry wasn't making a funny face or moving her. As a matter of fact, he was just looking at the top of her curly red hair. JUST LOOKING!!!! Ron scowled and gave himself a mental note to talk to Harry in the morning. He moved to tap her on her shoulder to wake her up, but Harry stopped him.  
  
"That's okay I can carry her, she'll be light." Harry said looking at Ron as if daring him to wake Ginny.  
  
Ron just looked at him, then said, "Okay." And climbed out of the limo.  
  
Harry removed Ginny's head from his shoulder and gently laid it on the back of her seat. Then he slid out and bent down to get Ginny. He placed his right arm under her shoulder blades and his left under her knees, and lifted her out of the car. 'Boy! She's light!' He thought. "Bye." He whispered to Roane who was watching in intrest. "I'll see you tomorrow at Wittnauer Alley."  
  
"Sure thing Harry, bye." She said coming to close the door.  
  
Harry followed everyone else to the house and carried Ginny through the kitchen, where her mother and father were still up debating the latest issues at the ministry, and up the stairs to her room. He laid her gently on her bed on her bed, then turned to find Mrs. Wealsey right behind him. He had grown a lot in the past few years and now she only reached at his shoulders.  
  
"Good night Harry dear, I'll take it from here." Mrs. Wealsey said hopping up to give him a kiss on his cheek.  
  
"G'night Mrs. Weasley, and I'll be going with Ginny and Mercedes on their morning run." Harry said as he left the room.  
  
"That's good dear." She said.  
  
Harry checked his watch, it was midnight, and he would have to be up in five hours. He trudged up the rest of the stairs to Ron's room and saw that he and Law were already asleep. He changed into his pajamas quickly and was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, dreaming of a pretty red-haired someone.  
  
A/N: It was long I know, but I had to get a lot of stuff in this chapter and I had fun writing it, I spent all day procrastinating from doing my research project for English, and did this instead. So do me justice and review my story!!!!!!!!!! Well, it is 3 in the morning and I have to be at church in six hours, but I might write the beginning of chapter three. 


	3. Wittnauer Alley and a Depressing Death

A/N: Well, here it is, the third chapter in three days!! Hope you like it. And I recently realized something, at the beginning of the first chapter I said that only Mercedes and Law were in Gryffindor with Ginny. I was wrong. Sam is too along with Anna Applebee from the ice-skating team, but Roane is in Ravenclaw. Also this chapter is mostly about Roane and her family, and the majority of it is sad, lots of crying done.  
  
Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING BUT THE THINGS THAT ARE NOT FAMILIAR.  
  
Chapter 3- Wittnauer Alley and a Depressing Death  
  
Once again Ginny woke with the sun in her eyes, but this time, her curly red hair was plastered all over her face, and looked like it had gotten into a fight an angry cat. She sighed, sat up and patted her head softly. The curls were sticking up at least three inches higher in some places. She sighed again thinking how much it would hurt to comb out the kinks. She got out of bed, opened the window and kicked Mercedes's foot saying, "Wake up you."  
  
"Shut the window." Hermione said from under her blanket.  
  
"I'll do it when we leave." Ginny said rummaging in Mercedes's trunk for a pair of her brother David's old soccer shorts. "You better be up and ready to take a shower by the time I get back missy." Ginny said grabbing her running clothes off of the back of her vanity chair, and went to the bathroom.  
  
She shut and locked the door with her wand, and took a shower, washing her hair and adding extra conditioner and detangler, so that her would at least be manageable when it dried. She got out of the shower, dried off and got dressed in a running bra and an old pair of Mercedes's brother's soccer shorts. Then she brushed her teeth and washed her face. She walked back in her room and Mercedes walked out still half sleep.  
  
Ginny sat at the vanity and stared at the brush on the table, wondering if she really wanted to go through all the pain of braiding tangled hair. She decided that she might as well, and started to slowly brush her hair starting form the bottom and working her way up. She finished brushing it, and then she parted it and began to French braid both sides, letting the pigtail hang in front of her.  
  
Mercedes came back in the room and sat cross-legged on her cot next to Ginny. Her wet and curly hair was up in a ponytail, and she too had on a running bra and old soccer shorts. "Almost ready?" She asked Ginny as she finished the last braid.  
  
"Yep, let's go. We can wait for Harry and Law in the kitchen while we get a bite to eat." Ginny stood up, put her running shoes on, and went down the stairs into the kitchen. She sat at the counter and pointed her wand at the cupboard. Two mugs flew out, landed on the counter and magically filled with green tea. Mercedes picked them up and brought them to the table. Ginny leaned over and pulled two bananas out of the fruit bowl, handed one to Mercedes and ate the other one herself. All this time, neither of them spoke. Ginny because she was savoring her favorite time of the day, Mercedes because she was still in her dream state.  
  
Harry and Law came down the stairs quietly wondering if anyone was awake yet. Harry stopped at the bottom and saw something that made his heart stop. Ginny was sitting at the table with a mug of hot tea in her hands chewing slowly and she was staring peacefully out the window above the sink. Her hair was braided in two and the ends fell down her back, just brushing the back of her seat. Mercedes was sitting across from her and was staring off into space, trying to stay awake, but was beginning to fail miserably. They were both only wearing running bras and shorts. And Ginny's eyes were glittering with the thought of what was to come.  
  
'I've got to find a good time to tell her that I like her.' Harry thought. Then he cleared his throat, "Are we late?" He asked.  
  
Ginny turned in her seat and looked at him with a smile. "No you're early, but we can get started anyway. This should be fun." She scribbled a short note to her mother and left it on the table.  
Dear Mum, Harry, 'Cedes, Law and I went for a run. Be back around noon. Ginny  
  
Ginny stood up and dumped her banana peel in the trash and grabbed a light jacket off the hook next to the door. Mercedes did the same, fully awake now that Law was in the room. They all went out the back door, and Ginny locked it behind them.  
  
"So what route are we taking?" Law asked.  
  
Ginny turned, then sat on the grass and began stretching her sleepy muscles, the others followed her example. "Well, I was thinking we could go around Ottery St. Catchpole to Stoatshead Hill, take a short break, then on to the rink to work out, then come back again, all in time to leave for Wittnauer Alley. How's that sound to you all?" Ginny said.  
  
"Sounds just fine to me." Harry said standing up and touching his toes. Ha straightened and flashed a bright smile Ginny's way. "Well let's go."  
  
Ginny stood and jogged out the gate and down the road. Within thirty minutes they had covered a mile at a quick jog, and were running in pairs with small conversations between breaths. Harry ran with Ginny, while Law and Mercedes fell behind.  
  
'Okay, now is my chance. I'm going to tell her.' Harry said to himself. "So, Ginny? Are you seeing anyone?" He asked her, staring straight ahead.  
  
"No. I was dating Colin last year, but we broke up after realizing that we are only friends." She said studying him. "What about you."  
  
"Oh no one." Harry said nervously. 'No, I can't do it, I can't tell her yet.' Instead he said, "Hey," He said, "I'll race you the rest of the way to Stoatshead."  
  
"You're on Potter let me just tell them so they don't freak out." Ginny turned around and said to Law and Mercedes, "Hey guys, Harry and I are going to have a little race okay."  
  
"That's fine, I wish you all the luck Harry. Ginny is a serious speed demon." Law said.  
  
Ginny smiled and turned around again. "On your mark, get set, go!" She said and took off, her braids flopping her back, not stopping until she reached the bottom of the hill.  
  
Ginny slowed to a halt and caught her breath, she had run three miles, in nearly four minutes. That was almost impossible.  
  
"Good god girl! What did you eat for breakfast to make you go that fast?" Harry said stopping behind her close to five minutes later, and pulling off his shirt revealing a toned chest and stomach.  
  
"Green tea and a banana." She answered honestly sitting down on a nearby bench and transfiguring a stick into two bottles of water. "Here drink, it will keep you cool." She handed him the bottle, resisting the urge to stare at his muscles.  
  
"Thanks." He said taking a seat next to her. "So Law and Mercedes seem pretty close." Harry said watching the couple slowly make their way to the hill.  
  
"Yeah, Mercedes told me that she liked him, but I don't know what Law thinks."  
  
"Well Law likes her too, he told me so last year. Maybe we should get them together." Harry said.  
  
"That'd be good for them." Ginny said, "They deserve each other." Harry nodded and they sat in silence while they waited for Law and Mercedes to catch up to them. Soon they did and conjured their own water bottles. After about five minutes of light conversation Ginny stood up and said, "Time we got to the rink." She turned her water bottle back into a stick and threw it over her shoulder.  
  
"Ginny can we just fly? I'm kinda tired of running." Mercedes said.  
  
"How can we fly when we don't have brooms?" Ginny asked skeptically.  
  
"I thing I can help there." Harry said. "Accio Thunderbird!" He said pointing his wand towards the direction of the Burrow. Soon they heard the speeding sound that was Harry's broom, the latest model from Quality Quidditch Supplies. Law did the same and soon there were two brooms in front of the group hanging in mid air, ready to be mounted.  
  
"But there are only two." Ginny said.  
  
"I'll ride with Law!" Mercedes immediately volunteered.  
  
"Well Ginny, I guess that leaves you and me." Harry said smiling at her. She smiled back shyly and walked over to him.  
  
"Okay, I guess." She said as they all clambered on to the brooms. She hugged Harry around his waist and couldn't help but notice how well her body seemed to fit into his. "Let's exercise for about half an hour, then fly home."  
  
"Fine with me." Law said, then he took off, Harry and Ginny right behind him.  
  
They landed at Beakmouth Ice Rink five minutes later, and Ginny pulled out her key and unlocked the door, letting them in. They worked out for a solid half-hour, then flew home, to find Sam, Dean, Seamus, Roane, and Mercedes's partner Marc waiting for them at the kitchen table.  
  
"Hey." Ginny said as she walked in, "We'll be back down in twenty minutes." She said.  
  
"Take your time, we're in no rush." Marc said.  
  
Ginny nodded and continued up the stairs to her room. She grabbed a shirt and a pair of jeans that would be easy to change in and out of. She went into the bathroom and turned the shower on. She let the water heat as she unbraided her sweaty hair. She took a quick shower and then dressed and ran back to her room, her wet, but clean hair dripping down her back. She didn't have time to brush it dry like she usually did, so she pointed her wand at her head and said, "Drylio." And her hair dried instantly. She grabbed a ponytail holder and threw her long hair into a sloppy bun. She slid on her favorite high top sneakers and then grabbed a sweatshirt from her closet and ran downstairs. Harry, Mercedes and Law were already there, ready and dressed and she seemed to be the last one needed. She stopped at the table and snatched a chicken sandwich off the plate in the center and almost swallowed it whole.  
  
"Let's go." She said after she swallowed a mouthful of chicken and bread. She led everyone over to the fireplace and passed around the floo pot. "When you step into the flames say Wittnauer Ally, Gate nine. Once you leave the gate wait for the rest of us." She threw her handful of power into the flames and they turned bright green. She stepped in and said, "Wittnauer Alley, Gate nine!" There was a whooshing sound and she was gone.  
Several gates later Ginny tumbled to the hard stone ground of an ice- skating store called Tara's. She stood up and dusted herself off moving out of the way to let the next person come through. But she didn't move soon enough, and Harry, who went through right after her, smashed into her knocking her to the ground once again.  
  
"Oomph, sorry Ginny." He said lifting himself and giving her a hand, pulling her out of the way just before Sam pelted through.  
  
"Thanks Harry." Ginny said brushing her clothes off again. After a bit, everyone was in the store and was looking at all of the sparkly costumes. "What do you think about that one Law?" Ginny said pointing at a purple ensemble that was hanging on the wall.  
  
"Ginny, I'm not wearing purple." Law said without looking up from a sport's magazine that he had retrieved from the front of the store. "I tell you this every time we go looking for new outfits. No purple. You pick what you want for your single routine, but I'm not wearing purple."  
  
Ginny shook her head and laughed, then continued looking for the perfect outfit.  
  
"How about this one Ginny?" Harry said lifting one from the rack behind her. "It's pretty."  
  
Ginny turned and looked at the outfit and saw that "pretty" was an understatement. It was downright spectacular. It was white cotton, with gold ribbon trim around the edges of the sleeves and around then neckline and hem. "Wow! That will work perfectly with my singles performance. Let me see it." She took it from Harry and looked at the size. "It should fit me too." She put it over her arm and continued looking for something that Law would wear. Their performance was very dramatic and she wanted an outfit that would pull the audience into the story. Her eye slid over a dark blue crushed velvet combination, and then slid back again. That one said it all. She held up the girl's part and smiled. It had a low neck and back line, quarter length sleeves, and a short skirt. Then she looked at the boy's piece and smiled even wider. Simple dark blue pants and a simple white long sleeved shirt. Surely Law wouldn't say 'no' to something so wonderful.  
  
"Law what about this one?"  
  
Law looked up from the magazine and smiled, "Now that's what I'm talking about." He said taking the boy's piece from her. "Not too frilly and fancy, but simple and graceful. Good, let's try them on."  
  
They walked over to the dressing rooms, and changed into the soft material. Both fit perfectly and were put aside to buy. Then Ginny tried on the white one and smiled to her self. It was beautiful, and it fit too. She held her hair up off her neck to see what it would look like. It made it even better, and she knew that it was perfect. She put both dresses back on their hangers and walked out the dressing room to find ribbons, and stockings to match both outfits. She did so paid for it all and sat down with Law and everyone else to wait for Mercedes and Marc who were having a hard time agreeing on weither to have sparkles in the costumes or the stockings.  
  
After about another solid hour of Marc and Mercedes arguing, they decided to get green outfits with no sparkles at all.  
  
"Thank god, now can we please go to the Quidditch store down the street?" Ron asked impatiently.  
  
"Yes. Just let us pay for this." Mercedes said. She went up to the cash register and laid the clothes on the counter.  
  
The cashier rang up the items and said, "That'll be thirty galleons each." She said checking the register and then turning to Mercedes. "Mercedes? What are you doing here?" She said. It was Miranda Write, a Gryffindor third year that really looked up to Ginny and Mercedes.  
  
"Hey Miranda." Mercedes said nicely. "I didn't know you worked here."  
  
"I didn't until just this summer. My mum owns the place and said she didn't want me sitting on my bum all summer, even though I would be perfectly happy with that."  
  
"Well that's cool, I'll see you at school." Mercedes paid for her stuff and left, meeting everyone else at the Quidditch store down the street.  
  
"What the heck took you so long?" Law said.  
  
"I was talking to Miranda Write."  
  
"I didn't know she could skate." Ginny said fingering the handle of a boom in the window.  
  
"I don't know about that, but she works there. Her mom owns the place."  
  
"Wow." Harry said picking up a box of snitches and examining them.  
  
"Hey let's get some ice cream after this. I saw a fancy muggle parlor around the corner." Sam said. She was addicted to ice cream and loved just about every flavor there was.  
  
" Sure thing Sam." Dean said.  
  
"Sorry, I'll have to pass on this one guys. I promised my mom I'd be home by three and it's two forty-five. I'll just see you at practice tomorrow morning." Marc said walking to the back of the store where the fireplace was. Within minutes he was gone. They walked out of the store. And down the street. On the corner was a bookstore called Borders and Roane was pulled towards it like a magnet.  
  
"You guys go ahead, I'll be in here if you need me." She said disappearing inside. Seamus shook his head and followed her, pulling her back out side. "Oh, I just wanted to look around for a minute." She said sadly.  
  
"Ro, this is supposed to be a day for us all to be together, having fun. Not researching whatever our mission could possibly be.' Seamus said. "Besides you already have so many books, you don't need any more."  
  
"On the contrary, my friend, a girl can never have too many books." With that she ripped her shirt out of Seamus's grasp and went across the street to the ice cream parlor. The rest followed her and took seats at the counter.  
  
Ginny sat next to Harry quietly and ate her French vanilla. When she finished she sat twirling her ring around her finger and staring at her cup.  
  
"Ginny is everything okay?" Harry asked.  
  
Ginny's head snapped up and she looked at Harry. "Yeah, I was just wondering what our mission actually is." Everyone went quiet as she said this. "And I've come up with a plan. When we get back to Hogwarts, we are going to read the Book front to back looking for any clues as to what we will have to do."  
  
"But Ginny, the whole thing is written in Lectic. The only known person to read and understand Lectic was Rowena Ravenclaw."  
  
"Exactly." Ginny said.  
  
"Ginny, I hope you aren't thinking what I think your thinking." Roane said to Ginny over her chocolate shake.  
  
"Sorry Roane, but I am."  
  
"Ginny, bringing someone back from the dead can be dangerous and requires very intense magic. The kind of intense magic that we don't have access to as of yet." Roane said seriously.  
  
"No, I don't want to bring her back per say, I want to bring her spirit back." Ginny said, "And that we can do, besides, you are a descendant of hers, the bond should be even stronger." Ginny got up threw her cup away and stood in front of everyone.  
  
"I don't know about this, I'll owl my grandmother and ask what she thinks."  
  
"Now no more talk about this until we get back to Hogwarts, it's too dangerous." Ginny cast a wary glance over her shoulder. "Now, I'm hot and sticky. Roane can we go swimming in your pool?"  
  
"Sure, let's go. Roane got up and led everyone back to Tara's and back through the fireplace to The Burrow. Ginny, Hermione, Mercedes, Harry Ron, and Law all ran upstairs, grabbed their swimsuits and towels and beach bags and went back down. Then they flooed to Dean's grandmother's house and Dean and Seamus did the same thing. Soon they were all in Roane's wide and spacious living room.  
  
"Is your dad here?" Hermione asked, ever the on to want to talk to him about politics.  
  
"No, but the Wicked Witch of the West is." She said referring to her stepmother Dana. "Father went to a press conference with the President in California and won't be back until the day before we go back to school." Just then Roane's four-year-old brother Daniel came running into the room screaming at the top of his lungs, there was a bright red mark across his right cheek. Usually he lived with his mother in America while Roane and her sister Isabelle were at Hogwarts, but had come to stay with them for the summer. He caught sight of Roane and flung himself into her arms. She picked him up and he put his head on her shoulder sobbing loudly. Soon after him, came a tall woman whose white-blonde hair was put up into an elaborate French twist.  
  
She was wearing a black turtle neck shirt and white designer capris with black thongs, her pretty face was contorted with furry, and she was holding a white summer dress that had bright green paint on it. She didn't look to be much older than twenty-nine, but was really thirty-three, which was much too young for her father in Roane's opinion, for this woman just happened to be Dana, Roane's stepmother.  
  
Roane tried to comfort little Daniel, but he kept on crying. "What did you do to him?" Roane asked her stepmother with flashing eyes. They never had gotten along, even when Roane was younger.  
  
"I slapped him for ruining my new Luis Phaeton dress. And he deserved it too! I was going to wear it to the Coronation tomorrow, but now I can't."  
  
Roane waved aside the superficial stuff and stared at the woman in disgust. "You slapped him? He is not your son, and you are not his mother, hell you're not even his legal guardian, you had no right what so ever to do that. When My father is gone that is his nanny's job as it is mine, and you look nothing like Sarah or me, so I doubt you could be." Roane hardly ever lost it like this, but when it came to her siblings, everyone backed away. The whole time she was saying this Roane's hand was gripped tightly around her wand in her pocket and she looked about to whip it out when Law put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. She got the message and turned to face Dana who was still seething at her and her brother. "You better be happy Law is here, other wise, I wouldn't be so nice about this." She stalked past Dana with Daniel, her sandals slapping the marble floor as she walked.  
  
Roane led every one up the grand staircase in front of the living room and through a paneled set of doors to her right. Everyone followed her into the west wing where her and her siblings' rooms were.  
  
She opened a door to their right and led everyone into the bright sitting room. The room had four doors leading to the bedrooms and the bathroom. A young girl was sitting in a large easy chair by the window, reading a book. It was Roane's thirteen-year-old sister, Isabelle. Her dark brown hair was in a braid, similar to the one in Roane's hair, that hung over her shoulder and tumbled into her lap, (long hair ran in the family) and her violet eyes danced merrily. She was the splitting image of her father and brother, and Roane looked like their mother.  
  
"Hello sis, what happened?"  
  
"Dana slapped Danny Isa." Isabelle's eyes flashed and she put down the book she had been reading. (Magical Animals: Used and Tortured)  
  
Roane sat down with Daniel on a couch and looked him in the eye. "Danny honey, why did you spill paint all over Dana's dress?"  
  
" 'Cause she hurt Toodles." He said hiccuping.  
  
"What did she do to Toodles?" Roane said looking around for the family dog.  
  
"She kicked him across the yard and made his tummy bleed, but Isa fixed him." Danny said pointing to the golden retriever who was stretched out on the carpet in front of the fireplace with a bandage around his stomach.  
  
Roane looked at Toodles and gasped. She loved that dog and that bitch had hurt him. "I'm writing to father." She set Danny in the corner of the couch and looked at everyone else, who had taken various seats throughout the large room. She walked over to the balcony, leaned over the railing and whistled loudly. A large tawny owl flew past her and into the room and perched on the back of the chair at the desk. Roane sat down, snatched quill from the holder took a sheet of parchment from the drawer and started writing.  
  
Dear Father,  
  
I am sorry to inform you that Dana has been abusing Daniel while I am not at home and while Isabelle is busy. She has also been hurting our beloved Toodles. This cannot go on, either she goes or Danny, Isa, the servants and I will move to grandmother's in Scotland. It is your choice, but I have had enough of this. Mother will be notified.  
  
Your loving daughter, Roane Marie Hughes  
  
When she had started writing, Seamus had picked up Daniel and walked over to read over her shoulder. "Don't you think that it's a bit formal?" He asked.  
  
"Not at all. I gave him fair warning when he left for the U.S., that if that bitch did anything we were leaving. She did something, and now he needs to know. If I don't hear any thing from him before Friday, I'm packing everyone up and moving. This has gone on long enough." She started to role up the parchment when Isabelle stopped her.  
  
"Wait, let me add something."  
  
Roane handed her the paper and she scribbled down something.  
  
Ps. You have until Friday morning to get back to us. If you don't, we will immediately assume that you have chosen Dana and we will move to the chateau Scotland. We have given you fair warning. Also give our love to Aunt Anna and the kids.  
  
Waiting for your answer by owl, Isabelle Anne Hughes  
  
"There, now you can send it." Isabelle handed her sister the letter and Roane tied it to the owl's leg. She carried it to the balcony railing petting it and cooing to it softly, then it took off in to the afternoon air. Roane sighed and came back in side wrote a similar letter to her mother who was currently with her grandmother, her father's mother, in Scotland and sent it with another owl.  
  
"Well, we might as well go swimming now. Isabelle would you like to join us?" She said picking Daniel up and taking him to his room to help him change.  
  
"No, that's all right, I think I'll go ride Dasher. But thanks anyway." She went into her room and came out several minutes later wearing jeans, a shirt and riding boots, her helmet tucked under her arm. "I'll see you all later." And she walked out the room.  
  
Everyone separated into different rooms and changed into their bathing suits, then went down to the pool. Ginny had on a light blue tankini that matched with her eyes and swim shorts over them. Sam had on a bikini with boy shorts, Mercedes had a regular bikini and her towel was wrapped around her waist, and Roane wore a full bathing suit that had hibiscus flowers on it. And the boys all wore trunks of various solid colors, except Daniel who insisted on wearing his Spider man trunks.  
  
Roane put floaties on Daniel's arms so he could swim around and then climbed the diving board and dove in letting the cool water wash her troubles away. She resurfaced and saw Ginny trying to teach Daniel how to float on his back, and Harry was staring at her with a peaceful expression on his face. Roane smiled to herself and knew that they would get together someday.  
  
Harry stared at Ginny as she played with Daniel. 'God she's gorgeous!' He thought. Her wet hair was plastered to her back and she laughing at something Daniel had done.  
  
She seemed to sense someone looking at her and she looked around. Her eye caught Harry's and she smiled brightly at him. He smiled beck and his bright green eyes sparkled, making her go weak. She grabbed hold of the side of the pool and steadied her self in the water. 'Oh my goodness he's hot! Wonder why I didn't notice before?' She thought with a smile. Just then a shadow passed over the water. It was Roane's owl Nitters.  
  
"Back already?" Roane said pulling her slim body out of the water and sitting on the side of the pool. She pulled the letter off his leg and began to read it. She gasped and read it again.  
  
Dear Miss Hughes,  
  
I am sorry to inform you that shortly after your father received your letter he was assassinated by a bullet to his heart. He died quickly, but he managed to get out some important words to you, your sister and your brother. He said, and I quote, "Tell my children that I love them. Tell them to go to Scotland, their grandmother will take care of them." And with those last words, he died. The culprits have not been caught yet, but we are doing everything possible to hunt them down.  
  
In his will he left his estates and all of his money to you and you siblings. You now own Harbor Court, the country manor you know and love, and the Chateau in Scotland. In the letter to your father you said that you would move to Scotland if he did not answer you before Friday, I suggest that you just that, and send Mrs. Hughes to me, child abuse and animal abuse is illegal, especially to children like yourselves. I wish you all the luck. Who ever killed your father, just might be after you too, so watch out for enemies.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Annabelle Whittington  
  
Roane stared at the letter from her father's secretary in disbelief. She had seen her father just three days ago, he was healthy and well, and now he was dead.  
  
"Sissy, what's wrong?" said a small voice at her shoulder.  
  
Roane looked up at her brother, her youngest sibling and tears started to splash down her cheeks. She pulled him into her lap and hugged him close. "Daniel, sweety, Father is gone."  
  
"I know silly, I was there when he got on that big silver bird you called a plane." He said sweetly.  
  
Roane smiled, but her tears fell faster. "No Danny, he was killed today and he isn't coming back."  
  
Daniel stared at her, then his face wrinkled and he started to cry. He buried his head in her chest and cried his little heart out.  
  
"Someone find Isa and tell her." Roane whispered resting her head on her brother's and rubbing small circles on his back trying to comfort him.  
  
"I'll go." Ginny said slipping her thongs on. "I'll take Marrow and find her, she can't have gotten too far." Ginny ran to the stables and found the sparkling white horse she loved so much. Marrow was munching on a piece of hay and staring at her like she was crazy. Ginny could swear sometimes that he had an attitude problem, for a Nivet-a type of magical talking horse that is closely related the unicorn, you'd think he'd be a bit nicer. But she loved him, because he could run like the wind and had a sense of humor. A sob caught in her throat, Roane's father was the one who had bought her this nivet for her birthday one year, and taught her how to ride.  
  
She let out an anguished cry, Sir John Hughes had been the nicest person she knew, and now he was gone. She opened the stall door and climbed onto the horse's bare back. Marrow let out a confused neigh.  
  
"There's no time to put a saddle on."  
  
He swallowed and said in a throaty voice, "Wha happened?"  
  
"Roan's father is dead, now just run. We have to find Isabelle and tell her."  
  
"Ginny, I'm coming with you, and who were you talking to?" Harry said running into the stables and picking up a saddle.  
  
"I was talking to Marrow. But there's no time to talk or saddle up, just come on!"  
  
Harry nodded and put the saddle back. He jumped on the back of the horse in the stall next to Marrow and Ginny galloped out the stable doors, Ginny hanging on to Marrow's mane.  
  
"Do you know where she is?" Ginny yelled in Marrow's ear over the rush of wind.  
  
"Yes I know where she is but you don't have to yell, I'm right here!" He yelled back. Harry, who was riding next to her stared at Marrow who stared back and said, "What are you looking at?" Harry's eyes went wide as saucers, and despite the moment Ginny laughed.  
  
"You really ought to read more Harry." She said. Then she was serious again bent on finding Isabelle. Soon she spotted her across a lake. She was sitting under a weeping willow sketching. Her black stallion Dasher was munching on the grass next to her. His reins slowly slid over his head and hit the ground  
  
"Isabelle!" Ginny called.  
  
Isabelle's head popped up from the sketchbook and she looked at them. Something was wrong, Ginny riding in a bathing suit with Harry, and riding bareback at that? Yep something was very wrong. She stood and put the sketchbook in the bag that was hooked to Dasher's saddle. "What's wrong?" She called across the lake grabbing Dasher's reins and throwing them back over his long head.  
  
"Your father has been killed, you need to get back up to the house as soon as possible. You, Roane, and Daniel are moving to Scotland with you grandmother immediately. Let's go!" Harry said all in one breath.  
  
Isabelle looked like she was about to faint, then she composed herself and vaulted onto Dasher's back. "Follow me I know a shortcut back!" She disappeared into the forest and Ginny and Harry followed her.  
  
After ten minutes of hard riding, they pulled up at the stables and gave the two horses to the stable hand. Ginny climbed off Marrow's back and he followed her. She turned around to tell him to stay, but he looked at her with sorrowful eyes and said, "I'm coming, I want to see her." Ginny just nodded and put her arm over his large shoulders. She rested her cheek against his coat and sighed.  
  
They walked up to the pool sand saw that Roane and Daniel had not moved, but now Daniel had cried himself to sleep and Roane's tear supply had seemed to run out. Isabelle ran over and kneeled next to Roane. Roane turned and looked at her sister nodded and whispered, "It was them I know it, they're after us Isa." Isabelle stood up, and seeing as her sister was very depressed, she took charge of the situation.  
  
"All right, here's what we do, guys, would you mind helping us move out of here?" She addressed everyone.  
  
"Not at all, Isa, you know we'd do anything for your family." Seamus said.  
  
"Good." She turned to the house elf that stood at the kitchen door, "Sally could you please retrieve Mrs. Hughes?"  
  
"Yes miss." Se squeaked and scurried into the house.  
  
Isabelle picked up the letter that had fallen from her sister's grasp. She read it through quickly and looked up when the Witch walked in to the back yard.  
  
"Well, what is it?"  
  
Isabelle looked at her with disgust and spat out. "My father is dead, he left you nothing. You are to go to his offices now, they are waiting for you."  
  
Dana looked appalled. "What do you mean he left me nothing? I'm his wife."  
  
"No!" Isabelle shouted, "His wife is in Scotland with his mother, you were his rebound! You get nothing! He left everything to his real family! Now leave!" But Dana just stood there, surprised at quiet Isabelle's out burst. "LEAVE!" Isabelle yelled.  
  
"I never loved him anyway." Dana huffed as she went upstairs to pack her bags.  
  
"And don't you dare take anything that doesn't belong to you! We keep a good inventory here, we'll know that something is gone!!" Isabelle shouted after her.  
  
She turned back to the distressed group of teenagers. Everyone had loved her father very much, as far as they knew he was the nicest man ever. "We'll need to work quickly. Ron, Dean, Seamus, Sam, you'll need to contact your parents and tell them that you all won't be home for a couple of days. Hermione, we can't floo to Scotland because we have too much to take with us, so I'll need you to call Kings Cross and purchase twelve train tickets and three Animal transportation tickets for the first train tomorrow morning. Marrow and Dasher and Princess will come with us that's why I want the animal transportation tickets, I don't trust anyone but you all right now. Ginny, I'm going to have to ask you to try and get Toodles into his carrier. He doesn't like the thing so be careful, he might bite. Mercedes and I will start to pack, and boys when you finish with that come and help us." Everyone left to do what they were told. She turned to the house elves that had assembled behind her. "All of you, I want you to pull out the suitcases from the attic and put them in our rooms. And I'll need about ten of you to pack my father's things, we'll sort them out when we get to Scotland. The rest of you pack away every single thing, leave nothing." She turned to Marrow and Harry who were still behind her. "Marrow, take Harry and help him pack up the things you, Princess and Dasher will need for the journey. I want this house empty before morning, those slimy murdering gits could be after us all if they know who our loved ones are." Both Harry and Marrow nodded and took off at a run for the stables.  
  
As she finished Roane seemed to snap out of her slump and she stood up cradling Daniel. "Let me get him changed and in the bed and I'll come help you pack." She walked into the house. Isabelle followed her. They changed Daniel and laid him softly in his bed.  
  
"He won't sleep for long you know." Isabelle said to Roane.  
  
"I know, but he'll need his rest, it will be a long journey even by train." Roane walked into her room and saw several suitcases lying open on the bed and three large trunks sitting on the floor next to the closet.  
  
She had a lot of clothes. She changed into a light peasant skirt and shirt and set to work. She walked over to her red wood dresser and began to empty it quickly. She grabbed and armful of her underwear and dumped it into the nearest suitcase. When it was full, she put it by the door and started with another one. She filled this one with her summer clothes and when that was full she put it next to the other one, in the next one she stuffed all of her ballet things. She had soon emptied her dresser and she then started on her closet. She dragged a trunk over to the door of the closet and started to place her shoes in it, quickly, but neatly. She finished filling the trunk with her shoes and shut and locked it, then tried to push it across the marble floor to the door. No such luck, it was too heavy. She sat down next to it and sighed.  
  
Seamus walked into the room and saw her dilemma, "Here, let me help you." He pushed the trunk to the door and then helped her fill the another one with dress robes of all colors. She pulled out a red one and smiled at it.  
  
"My father bought me this one when my grades came out last year. He was so happy that he had a genius for a daughter." She sighed, folded it and put it in the trunk with the others. Then she pulled out a light blue one. "This one I wore to my coronation last year, they were so afraid that my grandmother was going to die without leaving an heir to her title. My father loves his job as ambassador, and wouldn't take the title, so it was passed to me, but my grandmother is healthy and young she'll live for many more years." She sighed and filled the rest of the trunk in silence. She pulled out a thick dark blue wool hooded cloak with gold trim and laid it on the bed for the journey. "There are several more downstairs in the front closet off the entryway, for you and the rest."  
  
They pushed the trunk over to the others and opened the last one. "Let's put my nonsense stuff in here." Seamus nodded. They stripped her bed down, hangings and all and folded them and put them in the bottom of the trunk, then they went to her bookshelves and added layers of books to it.  
  
" I think we might need another trunk for the rest of your books. See, I told you, you had too many." Roane laughed at this and it felt great to do so.  
  
As if they had read his mind, four house elves carried in two more trunks.  
  
"Thanks guys, now go to the study and pack up what ever is in there, but bring me all of the computer disks."  
  
"Yes miss." They answered and scurried out the door. Seconds later one came back holding a large box, "Here is the diskes you was asking for miss." The small house elf said.  
  
"Thank you, now go and help the others." Roane took the case and set it on the bare mattress. She turned back to Seamus and helped him fill the last two trunks with the rest of her books and her various knick-knacks, and put the disks on top. When they finally shut and locked the last trunk Seamus looked around.  
  
"Well that's it, tomorrow the movers will come and transport the furniture to the Chateau. Let's go help the others."  
  
"Wait Sea. Everything isn't out yet." Roane grabbed his arm and pulled him to the closet.  
  
"What do you mean?" He asked.  
  
"Watch." She walked into the closet that could easily hold a baby elephant and stood next to the far wall. "Tap the wall." She said.  
  
Seamus did and heard a hollow sound. "What's back there?" He asked alarmed.  
  
"Do you remember when we got our rings?" She said holding up her own.  
  
"Yeah? So?"  
  
"Well do you remember what Dumbledore said about mine?"  
  
"He said that it held the answers to all your questions and that it would lead you down the right path."  
  
"Right, you are about to see what he was talking about." She turned to the wall, pointed her wand at it and said an incantation with her misty voice, "Finite sharf musscuk blibble." in a language that Seamus didn't understand. "That's Lectic for 'I am Rowena, the heir of Rowena Ravenclaw' my grand mother taught it to me last summer. My full name is Rowena Marie Anna Ravenclaw-Hughes."  
  
"But I thought your name was Roane, and that only Rowena Ravenclaw could speak and understand Lectic."  
  
"My father and Dumbledore shortened my name so as not to arrows suspicions. My father's last name is Ravenclaw, Hughes is my mother's last name. And only Rowena's female descendants can speak Lectic, me in particular because I am her heir and only the females can be her heirs. That's why the title was passed to be, because my father has no sisters, only one younger brother. Just like Harry is the heir of Slytherin and of Gryffindor. He was destined to be the last, but the first came accidentally, the Ancient ones never meant for that bit of history to happen. I'm just more of an heir, because she ruled a small and secret magic kingdom in Scotland. That's what I'm the heir of, that's why I was coronated last summer."  
  
Roane turned and rapped twice on the wall and the dark panels slid aside to reveal a dimly lit room. There was a marble table in the middle, and on the table rested a closed box. She walked over to the box and opened it revealing a glowing red ball, around the ball was a gold headband tike a small crown. She pulled it out and placed it on her head. She turned to him. "This is the crown that I have for the time being, until my grandmother dies and I become Queen."  
  
She turned back to the box. "You know that Rowena Ravenclaw was a seer right?" Seamus nodded. "Well, as her heir, so am I, but I'm the only one in my family. And this is a seeing stone. It is sort of like an aid if you're having a bad day. It has been helping me find out what our mission is, and I've almost got it, but there is a riddle that we all need to solve together for some reason, and it is written in German so it might take me awhile 'cause German is not my strongest language." She snapped the box shut and turned it on its side, where there was a hook attached if one was to wear it around their neck. She pointed her wand at it muttered something that Seamus couldn't hear, and it shrunk to the size of a small charm. She pulled a long chain out of her pocket, strung it through the hoop on the small box, put the chain around her neck and then dropped it down her shirt. "Now it is safe." She walked out of the hidden room with Seamus sealed the door and took him back into the room.  
  
"Is there anything else you're hiding from me, like a twin sister?" He asked playfully.  
  
"No silly," she said kissing him, "Just that."  
  
He kissed her back and then pulled away and smiled. "I'm glad to see you're not brooding anymore."  
  
"I have to be strong for my sister and my brother." Roane said.  
  
"Are you going to tell the others about this, and your history and who you really are?" He said pointing at the chain around her neck.  
  
"I will sometime tonight, because I know the questions about why all this happened, is eating them alive. They need to know anyway. I hold the key to our destiny." She grabbed the cloak off the bed and went into the sitting room. "Let's go see if the others need any help."  
  
They walked into Isabelle's pink room and saw that Sam, Mercedes and Dean were helping her pack. She had even more luggage than Roane did. Seamus didn't think that that was possible. Roane understanding his look, said, "It's mostly stuffed animals and books. She doesn't really care about her appearance that much, only if it is important."  
  
They walked out and into Daniel's room where he was sitting on the bed watching Law, Ron, and Ginny pack his things. Harry was still packing in the stables with Marrow.  
  
"Hey little buddy, I'm glad to see you up." Seamus said picking him up and carrying him over to Roane who took him in her arms and hugged him tight.  
  
"Roro, where's daddy?" He asked even though he all ready knew what the answer was.  
  
"Danny you know Father is dead. Why are you asking me that?"  
  
"I know, I sorry, please don't be angry with me."  
  
Roane sighed and smiled down at the child in her arms, "Oh I'm not angry with you sweetie. Come on let's get you dressed for the train ride." She sat him on the bed and rummaged around in the small amount of clothes that were left in the closet and pulled out a gray cloak, blue jeans, and a long sleeved shirt. She dressed him and then picked him up again.  
  
"You know he has very good speech for a four year old." Ginny complemented.  
  
"He has to, he belongs to a very proper family." Roane said looking at her.  
  
By the time she had finished dressing him, Law, Ron, and Ginny had emptied his room and Harry and Hermione were calling from the sitting room.  
  
They all walked back into the sitting room and sat down. "I got the tickets, eleven teenagers, one child, and four animals, they are under 'Hughes'. When I said that I wanted eleven adult tickets, the lady asked me if I was feeling all right, then when I said yes she asked if I knew how much that was going to cost. I said of course and she laughed at me!" Hermione shook her bushy head. "Oh and I got a private compartment too."  
  
"And the horses are packed up and ready to go in the truck and Frank is outside with the car. And the house elves are finishing packing up the rest of the house as we speak."  
  
"All right then, let's go." Roane said taking one last look around the room and picking up a suitcase. The boys grabbed the trunks and the rest of the girls grabbed the other suitcases, two a piece and they left the room. "We'll need to stop by the kitchens and get food for the journey." They trooped to the kitchens where a big picnic basket greeted them at the door. "Thank you Mincy, I'll see you in Scotland. How are you going to get there?"  
  
"Oh, house elves has magics too miss." Mincy said handing the basket to Daniel who took it. "We's seeing you in Scotland miss bye bye now we has lots of work to do."  
  
"All right Mincy, I'll see you day after tomorrow." Roane and the others left the kitchens and went into the front hall.  
  
Roane called her grandmother from the phone by the door to tell her that they were coming and to have someone at the train station around eleven the next morning. She asked if it would be okay if her friends came with her and stayed for awhile. Her grandmother said that it was perfectly fine, and that they could even stay for the rest of the summer if they wanted. Roane said okay and good bye and hung up.  
  
They put the luggage into the limo with the help of Frank and then went back inside for one last look around. Everyone turned to look at Roane and for the first time noticed that she was wearing a crown. "What is that?" Hermione said pointing to it.  
  
"I'll tell you all about it later. But right now we've got a long drive to the train station. Isabelle, give them extra cloaks please, it will get colder and windier as we get closer to Scotland, and who knows what the weather is up there." She waited as the others found cloaks that fit and then they all went out side. And piled in the limo. Roane, Isabelle, and Daniel took one last look at the home that they grew up in and sighed, then they got in the limo and drove down the driveway.  
  
A/N: Well I hope you liked it, the beginning was kind of boring, but there was more magic. It was really long and I worked really hard on it so R/R please!!!  
  
Your humble writer- syders 


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